Benefits of Blood Donation (at Memorial Blood Center)

 Benefits of Blood Donation (at Memorial Blood Center)

This here is the latest reward I received from Memorial Blood Center. It is 100% cotton and fits me pretty well. They were handing these out at the reception desk when I went in to donate last month. I think January is National Blood Donor month, so the center was doing a lot of things to promote blood donation. This shirt is one of them. 

I've been donating to Memorial Blood Center for years now, and I've gotten a lot of stuff like this. Long-sleeve shirts, short-sleeve shirts, coupons for restaurants, and even tickets for local sporting events. Memorial Blood Center does stuff like this to thank donors for volunteering their time and blood. And that's not all either. It's just the occasional stuff. 

Memorial Blood Center has something called the Hero Hub. It's an online thing where donors can schedule appointments, track their donations, and redeem reward points. For every donation, you can earn points, which can be exchanged for things like branded merchandise and gift cards. I typically go the gift card route, Barnes and Nobles. A number of the books on my shelf were purchased on gift cards from Memorial Blood Center. Regular donors earn points fast, and I haven't even gone into the once-a-visit benefits. 

All donors receive refreshments after their donation. Juice, cookies, snacks, lots of tasty treats. Donating whole blood is quick, like ten minutes, so there is little wait until snack time. Donating plasma takes a little longer. Donating platelets takes the longest, and so there is an additional consideration, complimentary Netflix. While donating platelets, donors can watch something on Netflix. I've watched at least four series all the way through (that I can remember while writing this) at Memorial Blood Center. So, you can donate blood while watching a good show. 

And I've saved the best benefit for last. 

You're doing good. You remember the shirt I mentioned at the top of this post? "Give Life". That's what you're doing when you donate blood at Memorial Blood Center. This is a not-for-profit company. It is not like some other places that collect blood, where the objective is profit. No, the objective here is doing good by giving life. 

And the staff appreciate this. I can't speak for Memorial Blood Centers in other places, but the one that I frequent has friendly staff. They greet you when you come in for an appointment and thank you for donating.  If there is a problem, and you can't donate that day, they are still friendly. They don't stop just because you aren't useful to them at the moment. I've even had fun conversations with one of them about something unrelated to blood donation, like anime. I leave my donation appointments there feeling good. 

The benefits for donating blood are numerous, and especially so at Memorial Blood Center. So, if you like the sound of them and you're feeling up to it, look up the center nearest you and give it a shot. Give life and feel good doing it. 

Brian Wilkerson is an independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor's degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Ancient Wisdom for the Modern Warrior (read for enlightenment)

This is a incredible book. It is just what I was looking for. I had searched for a book on Tae Known Do history and philosophy for some time before finding this one. All I had found was stuff about competitions, the World Tae Known Do Association rather than the art itself, and even stuff about the business opportunity involved in opening a dojo. It was depressing. Then I found this book.

This book is about the art itself. It talks about the techniques, and the forms, and the other physical aspects, but only so far as they relate to the mental and spiritual aspects. That is where the art is. The physical nature of Tae Known Do is only a manifestation of the mental and spiritual aspects. It is thanks to this book that I can finally, sincerely, believe that.

I have a black belt in Tae Known Do, 1st degree, which is the lowest ranked black belt. After over a decade of attending classes from two dojos, I had little knowledge of the mental and spiritual aspects. Those aspects were not taught, referenced, or alluded to in the classes that I attended, neither the all-belts version nor the advance version. I did not seek them out, so I didn't notice at first. Over time, however, it began to distress me.

I started to think that the whole point of this practice was for tournaments. Not for belt promotion, self-defense, or personal growth, but for winning medals in tournaments. I was not a competitive guy; wining medals in tournaments was not my goal. I mean no disrespect to anyone who takes pride in tournament competition, or finds meaning and fulfillment in tournament preparation. For me, personally, it wasn't something that inspired me. I wanted to use the physical practice to develop as an individual; competing against oneself, so to speak.

This book helped me to do that. It contains all the stuff that I wished I was taught in the classes. I would have liked to have attended Master Cook's classes, because they sound like the full package of physical, mental and spiritual conditioning. 

1. This book speaks of the history of Tae Known Do: where it came from, who started it, why they practiced it, and how the development of personal virtue merged with the development of fighting ability.

2. This book speaks of the distinction between "martial sport" and "martial art", and how a given dojo might give more weight to one or the other. It advises that a perspective student should examine a particular dojo and evaluate if it is the variety that they want to invest their time and energy (and, of course, their money). The book is respectful to both, though I feel Master Cook gives the impression that too much emphasis on "martial sport" can lead to students missing out on the majority of the art itself.

3. This book speaks of the value of Tae Known Do in every day life, and every day situations that do not include physical fighting. There is a chapter that is bookended with three such situations, where only one of them involves any physical fighting. 

4. This book speaks of the role of a mentor in guiding students through their development as martial artists. In particular, it speaks of instructors who are worthy of being called a "mentor", and those who have no interest in truly teaching anyone, seeking only payment for classes.

5. This book goes into detail about the Tenants of Tae Known Do: Courtesy, Integrity, Preservice, Self-Control and Indomitable Spirit. I memorized these when I was a kid attending classes, but I didn't understand what they meant at the time (frankly speaking, neither in regards to the martial art or in general). This book explains what they mean in context of the martial art.

It is through Master Cook's book that I gained a deeper appreciation of my art. I was able to recognize, in hindsight, that the dojo  I attended, particularly the second one, were more the "martial sport" sort of dojo. I was never going to find the "martial art" aspect that I was looking for at that second dojo because that was not its focus. That's fine. 

Seriously, it's fine. It was a matter of contrasting expectations. I recall other black belts at the second dojo who excelled at "martial sport". At the time, they took practice and training more seriously than I did, so they were the better martial artists.  I found what I was looking for in this book.

This is not a "how to punch/kick/block" sort of Tae Known Do book. This is book for those who want to know /more/ than how to do all of that. It can teach you the mental and spiritual aspects that underpin the kicking, punching and blocking. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives Ancient Wisdom for the Modern Warrior A+

Click here for my next book review: Pendragon's Heir (book 1)

Click here for my previous book review: So I'm a Spider So What - light novel 1

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

New York Times article - Brain Health

Interesting stuff and useful stuff. That's what I call this article here.

Some of it is just for curiosity; reading it for the knowledge and the joy of learning new things about the brain. The brain organoids are interesting but not terribly relevant to a typical reader's life, and I definitely wasn't expecting to read about a researcher who purred brains in order to get a more accurate count of its contents. It was also fun to read about the memory tricks. 

Then there is the more useful stuff. This is the stuff about the "lifestyle changes that matter", which the cover speaks of. Most of it is about sugar. Yes, we all know that too much sugar is bad for one's health, roots teeth etc. but do you know how much sugar is in the food you eat? I thought I was doing well by staying away from candy bars and soda. Actually, I was getting loads of sugar. 

A rough estimate is upwards of 40 grams a day. It was in the trail mix, the milk, the cereal, (and, just for the record, I didn't eat anything obvious, like Lucky Charms or Frosted Flakes) and of course, the fruits. One serving of raisins, about 1/4 of a cup or so, had sugar comparable to a candy bar, and very little fiber to slow it down, or nutritional benefit. The article here mentions raisins ( and bananas) in its section of foods to avoid during its Sugar Challenge. So I made a few changes (like unsweetened vanilla milk instead of the sweetened kind and cereal that could be tasty with less sugar). I definitely feel better after doing that. It's not an immediate thing. It's like a two-week thing.

Click here for my next book review So I'm a Spider So What - light novel 1

Click here for my previous book review:  Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle volume 3

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

The Ultimate Book of Martial Arts (read for fun)

I think this book was a gift from years back, and it is yet another book that has languished for a while on my shelf. This is an overview of many popular martial art traditions,  ten total (13 if counting different styles within the same tradition. It's a good book over all but it has some drawbacks. 

The book is divided into sections for each martial art, or a particular style within each martial art tradition. Each starts with history of the art or style and some philosophy to go with it. Next is basic etiquette and equipment. Third is common warm ups followed by basic techniques and then advanced techniques. 

I found all of these sections educational, helpful, and interesting. Etiquette is often as important for the martial art as the techniques, and receives as much attention. Both have full-color pictures showing each step, and they even include close-ups on some techniques involving grips. The back of the book lists the names, styles and rank of the people in the photographs, and they are all experts, including the author, Fay Goodman herself. So you can be sure that what you see is correct. 

This book provides a greater breadth of general martial art information than anything I've come across. However, it doesn't have depth. 

The book is a good sample platter, so to speak, to get the gist of the martial art in question. This is only to wet your appetite. If you want to learn more about a specific martial art then you'll need to look elsewhere. This means either finding a book dedicated to the specific martial art or finding a teacher or otherwise an expert who can tell you more about it. Indeed, most of the pages on technique include the refrain "Only practice this under the supervision of an expert" or something to that effect. 

Also, some of the sections are shorter than others. The section on Tae Known Do, for instance, is smaller than the ones for Karate and Kung Fu, so the Tae Known Do section has even less depth than some of the others. 

It is overall a good resource. 

Trickster Eric Novels gives ""The Ultimate Book of Martial Arts" a B+

Click here for my next book review (for fun): Spice and Wolf volume 9 Town of Strife part 2

Click here for my previous book review (for fun) : A Witch's Printing Office volume 2

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration). His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Tai Chi Bible (read for knowledge, and fun)

Tai Chi Bible

This is yet another book I found at my local library (libraries are great!).

The first thing one should know about this book and its author, Dan Docherty, is that it is a book on practical Tai Chi. That is, this Tai Chi is meant to be a form of self-defense that would be effective in real-life situations. Mr. Docherty distinguishes this (Tai Chi Chuan) from Tai Chi that is practiced purely for competition aesthetics or for health benefits. The latter of these is the stereotypical really-slow one. Mr. Docherty considers these latter two kinds to be incomplete at best, and missing the entire point/corrupted at worst. This is one reason why some other Tai Chi practitioners consider him to be a "heretic". He addresses this in the front and back chapters.

I like practical applications of martial arts, so that was perfect for me. I wanted something that will be useful in addition to good exercise. I've been using several of the techniques in this book here every morning as part of my daily exercise. It is helpful to fully wake up and start my day. However, I do not think this book is quite practical enough.

The techniques are described with both pictures of people demonstrating the techniques and words that describe the technique and its application. Both are, in a word, laconic. It can take some time to figure out precisely how to perform the technique and how this translates into the practical application.

In particular, Mr. Docherty does not mention a starting position for each technique or says something along the lines of "from technique X", and I don't know if he means the start of the end of Technique X. It is rare for him to state which stance should be used. It is like he transliterates what he says to students in person and takes pictures of what said students look like after they take the right positions for each motion.

There is a section on weapons that has even less elaboration. They are one picture and a title; no words, instructions or diagrams present. I would hardly call this a "definitive guide".

After the core technique section, he references these techniques while discussing other subjects. He doesn't mention which page these techniques are on, so one has to either page through or go to the index. It is inconvenient.

At either end of the book, there are brief areas where Mr. Docherty talks about other things related to Tai Chi. He is unapologetic to say the least in his ideas about modern Tai Chi and practitioners that he disapproves of. He makes a lot of good points, but it feels like trashing people who trash on him.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Tai Chi Bible" a C+

Click here for my next book review ( a request): The Endless Lands


Click here for my previous book review A Witch's Printing Office - volume 1

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration). His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

When Champagne Became French (read for fun)

This is the last of the books from my academic backlog. It took me perhaps seven years to read them all. That's how much reading is assigned in the college I attended. Anyway, this book is about the production and marketing of the sparkling wine known as "Champagne" that is produced in the region of France known as "Champagne" by the people living there known as "Champenois". Making it more confusing (for them and me), none of these three categories were fixed and/or rigid at the time, depending on who you asked. That's the point of the book. 　

It is a mix of economic, national, regional, social, geographical, and nutritional themes. No wonder the laws about the beverage grew so complicated. It is divided into five primary chapters sandwiched between an introduction and a conclusion. These sections can be summarized as:
2. Marketing champagne
3. Producing champagne
4. Protecting champagne
5. Defining champagne
6. Fighting over champagne
　
The book describes in the first chapter how champagne became a big deal even though its characteristic bubbles were originally considered a trick to cover the taste of bad wine. I found that to be a fun little fact.
　
The rest of the book goes into a conflict between vine-growers and sparkling-wine-produces, the vignerons and negociants and the two of them together (or not) against those from outside their region. So the bulk of the book is about this conflict. As a novelist, it appeared to me as a Decoy-Protagonist thing because it starts with the negociants but shifts in focus and sympathy to the vignerons.
　
Apparently, it is really difficult to grow grapes in the Marne because of the thin, chalky soil and more so when the weather is bad. Even if you get a big harvest and good wine the market for ordinary wine from the region at the time did not fetch a good price. Then there was one problem after another; a shifting market, phylloxera, competition with grapes and wine from other regions (even after a national demarcation made this illegal) and then World War I. Indeed, the vignerons of the region known as "Champagne" had a raw deal in this time period according to this book.
　
Despite this, the author, Kolleen M. Guy, makes the argument that this is not a struggle originated in class conflict. Labor vs capital is not what's going on (at least, not the primary thing). It is about a sense of regional identity within a national identity and defending what they see as both a regional treasure and a national legacy. Ms. Guy states that the average vigneron was more likely to get along with a negociant who was their neighbor then a vigneron who was not (this is such a gross oversimplification that I fear it is misleading but I'm trying to keep this review short).
　
It's clear that Miss. Guy did a lot of research. References are made to police reports, peasant petitions, political posters, records of the minutes from many meetings of many organizations, quotes from various people of various standings, and also comparisons with the scholarly works of historians and others who have written on this subject. The appendix and notes section could be their own chapter by length. The newspaper parody "War of the Two Beans" was particular poignant.
　
The history of the various "champagnes" is weaved into a story. It is an engaging story. I didn't want to look up "champagne" the beverage on Wikipedia or something like that because I didn't want to spoil the ending for myself.
　
I have two hang-ups about this book, and the first is the gratuitous French. There are a lot of French words used here that are not defined. Sometimes a quote will be only 90% translated into English.  While Ms. Guy does define terms like "terroir", "vigneron" and "negociant" these are the exception rather than the norm. I had to look up what "mevente" meant, a drop in sales.

The second hang up is the lack of section subtitles. The chapters themselves are labelled but sub sections are not. They are demarcated by a space and a special symbol to detonate a shift in subject but without a label it impossible to see at a glance the nature of the shift. This limits the book's utility as a reference. Which is a shame considering the great information here.
　
Trickster Eric Novels gives "When Champagne Became French" a B+

Click here for my next book review (a request): Nici's Christmas (Troubadours)


Click here to read my previous book review (for fun): Who Sang the First Song

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback

Picture History of the American Civil War (read for fun)

Believe it or not this is not another book that I kept from a college class. It's actually a gift from my mom because she knows I am a history buff. Anyway, it is a general history of the American Civil War from its background to Lincoln's assassination. As the title indicates it is composed predominantly pictures instead of text.

Each chapter has five or so pages that give an overview of the chapter itself, and the rest of the chapter is filled with relevant pictures alongside a couple paragraphs going into a little more detail on the subjects from the overview. For instance, the chapter relating to the Battle of Gettysburg will have pictures taken from early cameras of the battlefield and the military camps, more modern pictures of the area as it is now, maps showing the routes taken by the armies, and one more thing.

It is a drawing of the battles and how they progressed. Just one image for the major moments in a given battle that lasts two days or more. One is supposed to follow the numbers to follow the events. It is an interesting concept, but I found it confusing. Maybe I wasn't reading it right.

It is a mostly chronological account focusing on the land armies and their leaders but a few chapters divert from this. There is a chapter focusing on the naval battles and there is one for the political battles fought by diplomats at home and abroad. There is one for the common soldier on both sides and the kind of live he lived.

It is a fun book that does more than list dry facts. There is such a force of personality in the prose that one can imagine Bruce Catton lecturing on the subjects.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "American Heritage Picture History of the American Civil War" a A+

Click here to read my next book review (for fun): Who Sang the First Song

Click here to read my previous book review (for fun): My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom - volume 1

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback

Chuang Tzu (read for fun)

Chuang Tzu is a book on Taoist philosophy. This particular translation is part of the Basic Writing series from Burton Watson.

The introduction written by him advises the reader against systematic analysis of the work itself because it is a mystic text. It is not to be analyzed and studied but reflected upon and understood. I agree with him.
Looking for meaning in each line, paragraph, page etc.  is bound to be frustrating. I don't see it as written that way. It's more of gestalt sort of thing. You have to read it with an open mind, without preconceptions, to get anything.

For me, personally, it resembles some of the martial art books that I've read. I see themes of the empty mind, value of intuition/muscle memory and the importance of detachment and focus.

It's been kind of hard to write this review because of the nature of the wisdom in this book. It frequently makes light of language itself by calling it "reckless" or otherwise insufficient in explaining The Way. At one point, Chuang Tzu even says that once you understand the meaning of his words you can and should forget the words themselves. So while I wrote this review I felt like I failed to really talk about the book at all. It's more like what I thought about the book which might be completely off-base.

I like this book but for some reason I don't feel like giving it an "A". Perhaps it is because some of the passages feel like nonsense. The introduction mentioned that some of the text was difficult to translate, corrupted, or something like that. It also mentioned how some of the historical text feels like it was written by a different person with less skill but that he tried to remove as much of that as possible. Although this particular copy has scribbled notes from its previous owner which function as a contrasting viewpoint, which is helpful.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Chaung Tzu" a B+

Click here for my next book review: Mahou Sensei Negima! Omnibus #9

Click here for my previous book review: Drinking Cultures

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback

 

Drinking Cultures (read for fun)

Drinking Cultures is an anthology of anthropology. It is yet another book that I was assigned to read in a college class but did not have time for. Seriously, there is too much reading in a full load even for a nerd like me who loves reading stuff like this. Anyway,  each chapter focuses on a specific drinking culture somewhere in the world,  from Japan to San Francisco to France to Germany to Malta to Hong Kong.

 The idea of "alcohol as community builder" takes on just as many varieties, each influenced by each area's differing attributes. The wine-tasting subculture within France has the characteristics it does because of the long historical connection between "France" and "wine", and even this has its nuances with those critiquing such a view (in discussions of national identity and such).

Most of the anthropologists acquired their information through direct and personal investigation of these drinking cultures. It sounds like going to pubs, fairs, bars, and other places where drinking occurs and then observing the clientele and talking with them. More formal interviews are explicitly used in more de-centralized cases, such as the young gangs in San Francisco with the aid of people who have good relations with them, like social workers.

This is an information dense book. Each article (excluding the notes/references/etc.) is about 15 pages in length and yet it goes deep into its respective drinking. The why, how, where and other angles are covered. It is interesting and engaging reading.

Each chapter stands alone and can be read in about 1.5 hours so in this respect it is a quick read. However, I noticed something of a pattern in the way the chapters are arranged. It is as though consecutive chapters are meant to contrast each other. The first drinking culture, in Japan, has as its theme a drinking party which reinforces social roles and hierarchy and even has rules for behavior when its celebrants are drunk. The second one, in Germany, instead speaks of how the locals use the idealized "Irish Pub" as a means of relaxing from social restraints into a more loose and friendly atmosphere. The third and fourth drinking cultures, in Czechoslovakia and Norway, respectively, contrast the attitudes of public drunkenness. The former, according to this article, drink an awful lot and excuse mistakes due to drunkenness, while the latter drink regularly but in a narrow window and views silly behavior due to intoxication in a similar manner.

I had fun reading this.
　
Trickster Eric Novels gives "Drinking Cultures" an A+  

Click here for my next book review: Chuang Tzu

Click here for my previous book review: Young Miss Holmes Casebook 5-7

 
Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback

War and Human Nature (read for fun)

What causes war? Why do humans commit acts of violence? Is world-wide peace possible and if so then how? War and Human Nature is a debate on questions like this.

This book is part of the Opposing Viewpoints series. It is divided into chapters headed by questions and composed of articles by different authors answering said question in their own way. They are structured to contrast each other and thereby provide a (hopefully) panoramic view of the debate on each question.
For instance, the first question is "Are Humans Aggressive by Nature" and the first answer is "Aggression is an Instinct" followed by "Aggression is Not an Instinct".

Overall, it is an interesting book. The opinions work together, challenging each other and answering each other's criticism even if not explicitly doing so. Some of them have stronger arguments than others in my opinion, and some feel incomplete. These are excerpts, after all. The full versions are elsewhere.

This makes it a quick read. Each chapter can be read and considered in less than one hour.

The problem with this book is that it is dated. Much of the war that is concerned with is either World War II or the Cold War. There are exceptions but the majority of the arguments and debate is centered around these two subjects which are closer in time to their authors than readers in 2019. Terrorism, domestic violence, and hates crimes are examples of aggression and violence which are either not mentioned or only sparingly in comparison to conventional war and nuclear weapons.


Trickster Eric Novels gives "War and Human Nature" a B+

Click here for my next book review: Log Horizon volume 11

Click here for my previous book review: The Handy History Answer Book


Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback  

The Handy History Answer Book (read for fun)

I think this was a gift from several years back. It is a general history book that claims to provide answers to common questions.

The book is organized by subject: war, philosophy, discovery etc. These are the chapters. Within the chapters are sections that are a couple pages each in length. Each section is topped by a question such as "What is X" or "who was Y". As far as that goes, the book is fine.

Being a general history book, the answers are general. They are short and summarized, maybe to the point of being incomplete. This is not a problem. It was addressed in the introduction. Adding more specific answers to each question would make the book unwieldly in length. For introductory information, it is sufficient. The problems, as I seem them, are not with the answers themselves.

Rather, the problems are with the table of contents and the lack of recommended direction. The former is incomplete and the latter is stifling. These problems make the book less convenient to use and less useful overall.

The table of contents only lists the start of each chapter. So there is no easy means of paging within chapters, only between them. Next, the questions answered are not listed so the reader does know which are answered without going through the entire chapter. Making this worse, the table of contents only lists categories like "Ancient medicine" or "Trojan War" so one must make a guess in which section one's question is in. All this combines to make the book inconvenient at best as a reference book.

Each answer is limited in its information. This is excusable but there is no direction to find in-depth information. All that exists is a page of references at the end of the book. A couple titles as recommended reading for each answer would increase the book's value. Without such a feature, the book is far less "handy" than it could be.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "The Handy History Answer Book" a C-

Click here for my next book review: War and Human Nature

Click here for my previous book review: Mahou Sensei Negima - omnibus #7

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback  

The Last Days of Socrates (read for fun)

This is yet another college book that I never got around to reading. Yes, I rarely sold them back because I'm that much of a nerd. This is a collection of four stories styled as "dialogues".

I found Euthyphro  both fun and instructive. The  elenchus or Socratic Method is on display here and it shows the difficulty in defining seemingly obvious words like "justice". I like to see it as Socrates trolling Euthyphro; truly a gadfly as Apology goes into detail regarding.

Apology is the meat of the matter. It's  interesting. From what I can tell, instead of out-right refuting the charges against him, he tries to wriggle out of them by saying they don't apply. For instance, he isn't a teacher because he doesn't charge a fee and it's not his fault if others like his company and ask him things to which he answers at length. One has to wonder if he's taking his trial seriously. Indeed, he indirectly tells the jury that they're stupider than he is because they're unaware of just how stupid they are.

Crito is a short one. Crito argues from a worldly perspective; sons, and physical pleasures of life and such. Even in the next dialogue he's still focused on practical matters such as Socrates's funeral. He's a great foil for Socrates, the one who pursues only wisdom.

The more I read of Phaedo, the more I thought Socrates was making stuff up to ease the sorrow of his friends. Really, that seems to me to be his entire purpose in leading the conversation to the subject of why a philosopher should look forward to death and thus the concept of the immortal soul. While the idea of bodily needs and desires distracting the philosopher from the pursuit of wisdom makes perfect sense, the Argument from Opposites sounds more like wordplay than logic. Indeed, the editor's intersections between the sections of the conversation as well as the notes at the back of the book point out hasty agreements or weak points in argument.


After reading the entire book, I prefer the first two dialogues. They feel more solidly based and philosophical to me than the other two. The latter pair seem to me like an apology, of sorts, for the friends of Socrates. They tried to save him but he refused to be saved, and he refused to be saved because he wanted to die.
Even so, it is difficult to judge them as equals given their differing contexts (and when Plato wrote them, of course). Euthyphro is an acquaintance of his and doing something that Socrates disagrees with so he basically gets made to look foolish. The Apology takes place in a court room during a trial, which is much different than a private chat with his friends.
Then there's the discussion of how much of these events took place and how much is Plato creating as a frame device for certain concepts (like his Theory of Ideas). I find it telling that the Apology is the only one that was publicly witnessed by many people and more so that it appears to be the only one of the four witnessed by Plato himself.

I enjoyed all four and found them interesting in different ways.

Trickster Eric Novels gives The Last Days of Socrates an A.

Click here for my next book review (a request): Enaro


Click here for my previous book review (for fun): Mahou Sensei Negima -omnibus #8


Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).


His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback 

Medieval Military Technology - read for fun

Medieval Military Technology is another one of the college books that I kept. I find it a useful resource for novel writing.

Interestingly, it is more than just Europe's medieval period. Each section, be it Armor, Weapons, Fortifications, or Warships, goes all the way back to pre-history. Then it goes through the classical periods in Egypt, Greece and Rome. Presumably, this is for contrast. How these things change and how they stay the same is one of the book's themes. I am grateful for this addition.

Because of it there is more useful information here for elements that appear in the Medieval Fantasy genre. Every kind of martial weapon from the period has a little section devoted to it; construction, use, artistic representation etc.. The evolution of fortifications is particularly interesting to me: motte and bailey style military forts to tower keeps to castle complexes and then to fortified residences. The book's scope goes all the way to defenses against gun powder cannons.

There are also many illustrations to go with the written descriptions of whatever piece of technology the author is writing about. It is helpful to visualize and understand.

In regards to historian debate, there is a mixture here. Some sections, such as the one about mounted shock combat and the stirrup are just DeVries consolidating all the theories and the criticism of those theories up to the time of the book's publication. There is little, that I can see, of the author's personal view on the subject. In other sections, like the effectiveness of the Roman fortifications during the 4th century barbarian invasions, Devries is quite insistent that the walls, ditches etc. did exactly what they were supposed to do and that the "barbarians" who settled within them afterward knew perfectly well how to build their own but only maintained the already excellently built and positioned Roman walls.

This will indeed be a useful resource going forwards.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Medieval Military Technology" an A+

Click here for my next book review (for fun): Mahou Sensei Negima omnibus #8

Click here for my previous book review (a request): The Counterfeit Count

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

The Tao of Jeet Kune Do (read for fun)

I can't remember where I got this book. It's been a while. If I had to guess, I'd say that I bought it myself.

The introduction to the book, written by Linda Lee and the editor, says that the book contains little new information. It is mostly how Bruce himself liked to train and fight. I agree with them. Indeed, the first section on Zen and how it relates to the mindset of a Martial Artist echoes a book I read recently, "The Sword and the Mind". Both of them speak of how a martial artist should possess an empty mind so they can react quickly, and stress the importance of mental flexibility (i.e. not being fixed or rigid in methods).

　

Sometimes it appears like an instruction manual with explicit advice and lines like "the student should X" or "the instructor should Y". Other times it appears more like personal notes, such as the terms he doesn't define, the pictures without captions or explanation, and lines in parenthesis like "investigate Z for M purpose". I don't know how "crispy" relates to a martial art movement. I think it means something like a "snappy" motion.

　

I read Bruce expressing frustration at classical styles. They are seen as rigid, limiting and counter-productive because they inhibit innovation and individuality. "Organized despair" is how he refers to the forms/kata/etc. that these classical styles have. I can relate to that. There are times when I feel like they are more about looking good than being good. This book strikes me as a search for practical knowledge and methods. "Classical" is a pejorative.

Interestingly, he speaks positively of boxing. The practical sections, that of the specific "tools" and such, include images of boxing-like figures and refers to it often.

The techniques of Jeet Kune Do, based on this explicit technique section, involves a lot of feinting, deception and countering. Little attention is paid to kicking, at least relative to the fist techniques. While it may seem as though this is the same sort of limiting he criticized earlier, he says that what he includes here are simply templates; basic archetypes to use as needed. If they don't work, then forget them and trying something else.

I wouldn't recommend this book to a beginner. It strikes me as something for the intermediate and beyond to use to advance their craft. A beginning practitioner should develop self-discipline and a body of knowledge first. I base this recommendation on my self. Personally, I would NOT have been able to use as this book as a beginner. It would have been in one ear and out the other. Either that, or I would skip the methodology and go straight for the techniques, and thus miss the point entirely.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "The Tao of Jeet Kune Do" an A+

Click here for my next book review (for fun): Spice and Wolf volume 7

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Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

Read for fun: The Lives of Confucius

The Lives of Confucius is another book from a college class that I didn't have time to fully read at the time. It catalogues the many kind of "Confucianism" through the ages, and the faces of this famous philosopher, along with charting how he became popular. This makes it a intriguing mixture of literary analysis, cultural examination and historical development.
　
In a nutshell, I found this book to be a concentration of knowledge about Confucius. It is a useful reference to the many ways he was portrayed and is still portrayed. While there is a lot of information packed into these pages, the Suggested Readings section at the end of each chapter demonstrates that there is plenty more to read, research and form an opinion on.

The majority of the chapters are straightforward. The "historical" Confucius, the opinions of his early critics, the use of his name by the Han Dynasty, the academic debates and all the stuff about the Imperial/Ancestral cult stuff, all of these (mostly)  read as the author passively transmitting information. I found all of that interesting.
　
The further towards the modern era the book goes, the more it becomes interaction with the other voices in the, for lack of a better phrase, Market of Confucius(es). This is basically the final chapter, which is appropriately called "A Confusion of Confusciuses". In this chapter, Michael Nylan (the author of this chapter in particular) basically critiques many modern writers of Confucius as deliberately misconstruing the classics for their own goals or accidentally getting the wrong idea through faulty translations. There are three that he praises but most of them get flak. There's even a joke that I find worth including here because it does a wonderful job of illustrating his point. He writes that no one has portrayed Confucius as a proto-feminist yet but he expects that there will be one eventually.

There might even be yet another Confucius in the end of this book. Yes, one of the authors throwing their own hat into the ring; a Confucius of international cooperation, advocate of learning, and a practitioner of humaneness (which may or may not be the same as "social justice").

Trickster Eric Novels gives "The Lives of Confucius" a +
(I.e. I don't know how to grade this other than the fact that I enjoyed reading it because it is the only book on Confucius that I've read).

Click here for my next book review (a request): Amanda Moonstone - Darkbane Sorceress

Click here for my previous book review (also for fun): No Game No Life volume 5


Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

Read for fun: The Sword and the Mind

I picked this book up some time ago out of curiosity. It is about techniques and philosophy from the Shinkage school of swordsmanship. This book itself was translated by Hiroaki Sato; the original was
written by Yagyu Munenori in the 17th century.

It has three basic categories:
1. Historical context and introduction written by Hiroaki Sato (along with translation footnotes).
2. A list of techniques with instructions and illustrations created by the historical swordsmen.
3. Philosophy, school principles, mental techniques anecdotes to illustrate a point etc. also created by the historical swordsmen.

It's interesting stuff.

I enjoyed reading the historical context because I like reading about history, and having such context for the latter two categories is indeed helpful for understanding them.

The list of techniques and their illustrations are, obviously, most useful for those who will learn and practice them. Even then, this is not something that can teach swordsmanship on its own. Indeed, Yagyu Munenori frequently mentions how difficult it is just to describe the techniques, and also writes that something will "be transmitted verbally" because a teacher is necessary. Even then, the techniques themselves are only the first stage. Once the student has achieved the proper mindset through training with them, he no longer has any use for them.

The meat of the matter, from my perspective at least, is the third category, the philosophy behind the techniques that was crafted by the men in their historical context.

A summary would be misleading and insufficient but, in a nutshell, it advocates an empty mind. This does not one that is lacking anything but rather one that is not cluttered. A mind that is free to move around and indeed, does move around. This is the Zen influence, which both the author and the translator make note of.
It is frequently stated how important it is that a mind not "tarry" or become fixated on any given thing, including a desire not to be fixated. Interestingly, Yagyu Munenori states that Confucians are stuck at the beginner level because of their fixation on "kei", which Hiroaki Sato translates as "respect" or "reverence".

I enjoyed reading this and I found it useful but it is too far outside my usual grading rubric for a proper grade

Trickster Eric Novels gives " The Sword & the Mind: The Classic Japanese Treatise on Swordsmanship and Tactics" a +

Click here for my next book review ( a request): Misaligned

Click here for my previous book review (a request): The Tribute
 
Brian Wilkerson is a freelance book reviewer, writing advice blogger and independent novelist. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).
 

Read for Fun: The Medieval Siege

This is a textbook I kept from a college class because I thought it would be useful reference material. I didn't read a tenth of it at the time because there was enough time for it. Anyway, I finished it the other day.

This book traces a path in siege warfare in Europe and western Asia (the Middle East etc.) from the end of the Roman Period through the Reformation (around the end of the 1400s). It deals with tactics, equipment, and the social/political/religious stuff involved with sieges themselves.

I like the beginning and ending of this book; no that is not a backhanded compliment.

The first several chapters have great information pertaining to siege warfare. It talks about sieges in detail, and also generally. That is, the course of a typical siege. It compares between Roman, post-Roman and "barbarian" methods and equipment. There is a lot of information in particular about the Viking period. The background of sieges is explored: logistics, maintenance of fortifications, internal affairs and external relations etc.
There is a lot of stuff that I find useful and what I would expect to find in a book that deals exclusively with sieges.

The middle chapters are more about general history. To grossly oversimplify, it is a list of names and places and results. I imagine I could find similar information in any book about the crusading period or the Hundred Years War,  or even in an online thing like Wikipedia. The density of siege details is lower. They're still useful, but between the chapters before and the chapters later, they feel superfluous.

The later chapters reverse this trend. They are a chapter about siege equipment and a chapter about siege conduct and customs. It is compact stuff about throwing machines, mining, and "dirty tricks", that is followed by even more informative siege conduct, surrender terms, and the evolution in what was done and what was acceptable, as seen by chroniclers over time.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "The Medieval Siege" by Jim Bradbury a B+

Click here for my next book review (for review): The Tribute

Click here for my previous book review (also for fun): Dungeons and Dragons e3.5 Dungeon Master's Manual

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

Answering Review Request: When Hope Calls

David Lui asked me to read his novella "When Hope Calls". It's about a humanitarian office that tries to save a girl from slave traders. It's based on a true story, and given this fact, my grading system of "plot" and "characters" and "polish" feels....inappropriate. So this will be more free-style than usual.

　
The premise is that Mya, the girl who was kidnapped by slave traders, miraculously (this is the word used in the story itself) has a cell phone on her. The cast tried to pinpoint her location through clues she provides and eavesdropping on her captors. It is a high-emotion, touch-and-go situation with low periods that feel like emotional burnout.

During the periods of rapid activity and tense waiting that occur between calls from Mya, the cast ponders what sort of person kidnaps a child to sell to into a harsh and abusive life, and controls them with fear and violence. The answer they come up with is a person motivated by greed and envy.

When reading reviews from books, I've noticed that it is common to call them "page-turners". In fact, it is so common that I bet someone has said "lots of books are called page-turners, but this one really is!" Maybe it is because the thriller and suspense genres aren't my personally preferred ones, but I don't generally read books that are mean to be finished quickly. This one has the rare distinction from me of being called a page-turner. It is a quick read, with high suspense and tension throughout.

There is a tad of Leaning On the Fourth Wall when one character accuses another of being part of the human trafficking problem because they're not doing anything about it at the moment.

It has a good ending. Regardless of whether or not Mya is rescued, The Adventure Continues.

When the story is over and Mr.Lui returns us to real life, he lists steps the reader can take to combat human trafficking. They are all practical things that the reader can do personally, and not appeals for donations, which I think is nice. It's about spreading awareness of the problem.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "When Hope Calls" a +

This has been a free review request. David Lu asked for an honest review so I provided one.

Click here of my next book review (a request): Poisoned Princess

Click here for my previous book review (for fun): D&D Complete Divine.

Brian Wilkerson is a freelance book reviewer, writing advice blogger and independent novelist. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).

Read for Fun: Worlds of Medieval Europe

Read for fun review

Brief backstory: Back in college, I wanted to take this intro course on medieval European history, but there was never time in my schedule for it. Other cases had higher priority because they were required for my majors (I choose to focus the history one on ancient eastern Mediterranean). To compensate, I bought the main textbook for the class. That book is Worlds of Medieval Europe by Clifford Backman . It is a fascinating read and also an engaging one. I will examine Content, Tone and Polish and then assign a grade.

 CONTENT

The book's reach in regards to time is the tail end of the Roman Imperial period to just before the 15th century Renaissance and its reach in regards to space is from the Iberian Peninsula to Central Asia, and from Norway to North Africa. Mr. Backman does not regard Medieval Europe as existing on its own but as a part of this wider world.

The book's theme is less about narrating the events that happen but more about how these events fit in with the society, influence it, and are influenced by it. "Gestalt" is the word I'd use to describe the book's focus. In other words, how the machinery of Medieval European Society functioned in addition to all it's little gears and what this created.

There is a great deal of information here. It's about the time, the society, the economy, the religious life, the cultural life, along with farmers, merchants, nobles, priests, sailors contrasted with each other. As many as three chapters will go over the same time period in order to examine them from different angles.

 TONE

Forget all stereotypes about academic books being stifling or dry. This one is remarkably engaging. There is a strong writer's voice present that make it like a storyteller instead of a historian, and yet it remains objective.

Footnotes have jokes in them. A good chunk of them exist solely to provide some historical fun fact or for Mr. Backmann to make some humorous illustration of a point.

POLISH
No spelling or grammar errors. There's a good use of images.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Worlds of Medieval Europe" an A+

Click here for the next book review (a review request): Shadow of the Raven

Click here for the previous book review (technically a beta read): Final Ragnarok: She Returns

Answering Review Request: Apple Cider Vinegar For Weight Loss: The Secret Of A Successful Natural Remedy For Faster Weight Loss (Apple Cider Vinegar For Beginners)

Jessica David asked me to read her book "Apple Cider Vinegar For Weight Loss: The Secret Of A Successful Natural Remedy For Faster Weight Loss (Apple Cider Vinegar For Beginners) ". It's an intro to this substance and its possible applications in health and medicine. It's obviously not a novel so my scale for this book will include Content, Tone and Polish. The grade will come afterward.

CONTENT

Considering the blurb, I thought this would be just a 44 page commercial for "Apple Cider Vinegar", but that is not at all the case. There's a lot of useful/interesting information here even if you don't buy into the alleged health benefits.

In the first chapter, there's a brief history about Apple Cider Vinegar and how it can be produced, both domestically and industrially. I found both of these interesting.
There's two chapters of recipes, both for drink and food. They're supposedly tasty but I've haven't tried them so I'll take Miss. David's word for it.

The main attraction, the health benefits, are decent. It's kinda sketchy but Miss.David isn't the one doing the research; just presenting it. Besides, Layman's terms. I don't think anyone other than the researchers themselves would understand the nuts and bolts (I wouldn't, for sure).  Her information on how to make Apple Cinder Vinegar is much more thorough so I believe that is more her area of experience. The ending has this long list of sources so if the reader is intrigued they can follow the trail of bread crumbs.

TONE

It is a cautious and friendly tone. The book reads like a friend saying, "I heard about this thing and it sounds cool. Want to find out more about it?" It's not at all a salesman's pitch. There's no "subscribe to my miraculous program and use this book for a discount" sort of thing. You know, not a husker thing. It's a sense that Miss. David is genuinely interested in Apple Cider Vinegar and wants to share this knowledge rather than someone trying to capitalize on a trend and make it the next big money making scheme.

Indeed, Miss.David wants to distance herself from weight loss trends; all that stuff promising the moon and all the stars if you buy their product. Instead, Miss. David regularly mentions the need for more research before any of the health claims can be stated with certainty. She also mentions that there are a number of downsides to Apple Cider Vinegar such as the acidity causing problems for stomachs or tooth enamel. In other words, there's no miracle drug or silver bullet here. In fact, I get the feeling that she enjoyed putting "weight loss 'secret' " in quotes because, as she explicitly points out, there is no secret.

POLISH

I found three errors regarding spelling and grammar.

The long list of references at the end is good but I would like to see more connection between that list and the body of the work. Most of it is stuff like "studies by X and others". The reader shouldn't have to make the connection on their own. If I did that in college, my professors would have thrown a fit (metaphorically speaking of course).

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Apple Cider Vinegar For Weight Loss: The Secret Of A Successful Natural Remedy For Faster Weight Loss (Apple Cider Vinegar For Beginners)" a B

This is a free review request. I was given nothing in exchange for this review except a free copy of the book.


Click here for the next review request:  (which was originally a beta read): Final Ragnarok: She Returns
Click here for the previous review request: Spirit Tales: The Wheel Work

If you want to read more about Apple Cider Vinegar immediately, this is a link to Maira Nutrition. It's one of those list things that are standard with health tips. In this case, "10 Health Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar".
It is a quick read covering similar ground as this book. Similar to the book, she mentions the organizations that conducted the studies which support her facts, but there is no formal list of sources (apparently, I am not the only person who disliked using the MLA style of citation). She does, however, state a couple times that a reader should consult with their physician (or dentist, as applicable), which is more direct and to the point for anyone who considers using  Apple Cider Vinegar.
https://www.mairanutrition.com/weight-loss/health-benefits-of-apple-cider-vinegar/


Brian Wilkerson is a freelance book reviewer, writing advice blogger and independent novelist. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration).